Tag: Kalif Raymond

Lions Monday medical report after victory over Titans

Breaking down Detroit Lions injuries and medical outlooks from the Week 8 win over the Titans, including Malcolm Rodriguez and Jared Goff

For the Lions this week, déjà vu was a double-edged sword. After another blowout victory, the Lions unfortunately had an injury to another front-seven defensive player in Malcolm Rodriguez. The last time the Lions blew out a team (Cowboys), they lost Aidan Hutchinson and Kyle Peko.

The game was otherwise a healthy one — although you never want to see your QB limping. Fortunately, the injury to Jared Goff does not appear significant.

On Monday, Dan Campbell in his press conference was not asked and did not comment on any injuries in this game.

Here are the injuries I saw along with suspected diagnoses:

Malcolm Rodriguez (1q 12:57) left ankle sprain

On Rodrigo’s first play which was punt coverage, a Titans player crashed into him from the side which likely caused an eversion injury to his left ankle. Eversion injuries can cause high ankle sprains or medial ankle sprains.

He was taped up and returned to the game for one more play which was kickoff coverage. During that play which was his last, his ankle was clearly not stable as it gave out on him.

Immediately after the game, Dan Campbell tentatively stated: “I don’t think it’ll take the rest of the season.”

An update on Monday by @Schultz_Report provided significantly better-than-expected news in that it’s a only minor ankle sprain and he’s expected to miss just one game. That means he should be back for Sunday Night Football vs the Texans.

Jared Goff (1q 7:47) right low ankle sprain

Credit to the Fox broadcast for alerting us to the moment of this injury as it was almost imperceptible in real-time. In slow motion, you can see the right ankle suffer a mild inversion which can cause a low ankle sprain.

A low ankle sprain, if not severe, can be taped and played through. That’s what happened here as Goff returned with a tape job and didn’t miss any plays until garbage time.

Goff may be sore this week and may even have limited or no practice days, but he should play vs the Packers without significant limitations.

Kalif Raymond (4q 8:15) head trauma

After a monster day, Raymond had his head slammed onto the turf. He was holding his head with both hands briefly and was slow in getting up. There were no signs of fencing or loss of consciousness which would have definitively signaled a concussion.

While he didn’t return to the game for garbage time, he did pass the sideline concussion evaluation and seemed fine after the game. He’s not out-of-the-woods yet as delayed concussion symptoms are possible and generally require self-reporting. If we don’t hear anything in the next couple days, Raymond should be a full-go vs the Packers.

Kalif Raymond: ‘I’ve been ready’ for record-setting day vs. the Titans

Lions receiver and punt returner Kalif Raymond: ‘I’ve been ready’ for record-setting day vs. the Titans

Kalif Raymond put his name in the NFL record books on Sunday. Raymond ran back a punt 90 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter of Detroit’s 52-14 win over the Tennessee Titans. The wideout then caught a seven-yard touchdown pass from Jared Goff later in the quarter.

That made Raymond the first player in NFL history to return a punt for a touchdown and catch a touchdown pass in the same game. The punt return TD was the first for Raymond since the 2022 season despite several close calls–including another one in this game.

After the victory, the high-energy wideout was brimming with excitement about the punt return TD.

 “I’ve been ready for that feeling too many times,” Raymond told reporters. “It’s kind of surreal, it’s kind of like, ‘Oh, oh, it’s happening, it’s happening,’ saying, ‘Don’t mess up, don’t mess up.’ But, no when you got guys like that – I’ve been saying it the past 30-45 minutes – when you got defensive guys who will go play three snaps, force a punt, and then go block on the punt, it’s incredible.”

Entering the Week 8 game, Raymond had 14 returns for 125 total yards in Detroit’s first six games. Against Tennessee, Raymond raced to 190 yards on five punt returns.

Lions set several team records, 2 NFL marks in runaway win over the Titans

Lions set several team records in runaway win over the Titans and also had a player break an NFL mark

Sunday’s 52-14 win over the Tennessee Titans produced some history for the Detroit Lions. The Lions rolled to some team historical marks and also set a couple of records never before accomplished in the long history of the NFL.

As the FOX broadcast noted, the first half featured five different Lions scoring touchdowns. That’s the first time five Lions have reached the end zone in the same half in franchise history.

Kalif Raymond didn’t score in the first half, but the wideout and punt returner took care of that quickly in the third quarter. After nearly returning a punt for a touchdown in the second quarter, Raymond hit paydirt after the Titans first drive of the second half. That made some history:

Raymond wasn’t done, however. He caught a short touchdown pass from Jared Goff later in the third quarter, and that made him the first player in NFL history to score on a punt return and a receiving touchdown in the same game. Raymond accomplished that historical feat in less than seven minutes of game time.

Goff also made NFL history in this game, despite passing for just 85 yards by completing 12 of his 15 attempts, netting three touchdowns and zero giveaways. That makes No. 16 the first QB to ever throw at least two touchdowns while completing at least 72 percent of his passes and notch a QB Rating over 110.0 in five straight games

 

The 52 points also marked just the fourth time the Lions have topped 50 points in a regular season game, and they hadn’t done it since they beat the Bears 55-20 on Thanksgiving in 1997.

 

Lions roar past Titans in Week 8 blowout win

The Detroit Lions blew out the visiting Tennessee Titans in eek 8 thanks to defensive takeaways, special teams and opportunistic offense

The Detroit Lions were favored to beat the Tennessee Titans in Week 8 by the team’s largest margin since 1996. The 11.5-point line proved to be woefully inadequate.

The mighty Lions roared past the hapless Titans, 52-14, in a game that wasn’t competitive after the middle of the second quarter. After a strong start by the Tennessee offense caught the Detroit defense sleepwalking a little in the earlygoing, the Lions completely dominated all phases of the game. A 14-14 tie early in the second quarter morphed into a 35-14 rout at halftime.

Two quick Kalif Raymond touchdowns after the half, one on a punt return and another on a reception from Jared Goff, quickly opened up the margin even more. Garbage time saw the Lions tack on a Jake Bates 51-yard field goal to complete the scoring.

The Lions scored 52 points despite gaining just 225 net yards of offense; Detroit ran just 47 offensive plays. They didn’t need more, thanks to four defensive takeaways and three long special teams returns continually set up the Lions offense with short fields. Tennessee’s defense was competitive early but couldn’t keep up with the Lions’ bevy of offensive weapons and great field position.

With the win, the Lions improve to 6-1. Tennessee drops to 1-6.

Jameson Williams drops appeal, will serve two-game suspension

Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams has dropped his appeal of his two-game suspension from the NFL and will begin serving it immediately.

Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams has dropped his appeal of his two-game suspension from the NFL and will begin serving it immediately. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media was the first to report this news regarding Williams.

The former Crimson Tide wide receiver had been facing this suspension for several weeks, but now he seems to be turning the page on the situation. This will mark the second time that the NFL has suspended Williams. He was suspended for four games in 2023 for breaking the league’s policy on betting.

He will miss games against the Tennessee Titans and Green Bay Packers before returning on November 10 against the Houston Texans.

Williams was in the middle of a breakout season for the Lions and was emerging as a primary target for quarterback Jared Goff. He had finally found trust with the coaching staff, especially offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, which allowed the Lions’ offense to become more explosive.

The Lions will now lean on receivers Kalif Raymond and Tim Patrick to fill his role within the offense. They do not have the same skillset, but both have flashed at times this week, with Raymond scoring a critical touchdown in Week 7 against the Vikings.

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Potential worries about the 2024 Detroit Lions: WRs not named Amon-Ra St. Brown

The Lions have one elite WR in Amon-Ra St. Brown and them some question marks with unproven or unknown answers

The 2024 Detroit Lions are poised on the precipice of greatness. Dan Campbell’s Lions were within one half of the franchise’s first Super Bowl appearance a year ago, and they’ve taken steps to significantly upgrade the pass defense.

Heck, I’ve picked Detroit to win the NFC this year. These Lions are that high-end.

Yet every team has flaws and vulnerabilities. Wrapping up the list of my biggest concerns (aside from “injuries”) about what might keep the Lions from achieving their full potential: wide receiver play from anyone not named Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Potential worries about the Detroit Lions: Defensive newcomers with injury histories

Potential worries about the 2024 Detroit Lions: The safety spot

Potential worries about the 2024 Detroit Lions: Kicking

The Lions are in great hands with St. Brown, an All-Pro who was briefly the highest-paid wide receiver in NFL history earlier this offseason. He’s worth every penny, and St. Brown could very well set the league record for targets and receptions in 2024.

After St. Brown, well…

Every other wide receiver will be at least one spot higher on an NFL depth chart than they’ve ever been before. That starts with Jameson Williams, who has not done much in two star-crossed seasons.

Jamo

“Jamo” has the talent to step up and take over the No. 2 wideout role. With his incredible speed, lanky toughness and improved approach and maturity, Williams has done what he needed to do this offseason to earn the role and the respect. Yet as confident as I am that Williams will be an impact player, he’s caught all of 25 passes in 18 games (10 starts) in two years, hauling in less than half the balls thrown his way from Jared Goff.

I can see Williams, all 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds of him, being a high-variance player; one week he’ll catch eight passes for 111 yards and two TDs, then drops back to 2 catches for 27 yards the following week, with a drop mixed in for good measure. In the team’s final scrimmage of the summer, Williams didn’t see a ball thrown his way until very late in the action. On the weeks where Jamo is hitting big, the Lions have a fantastic 1-2 punch at WR.

Lif

Those other weeks require someone else to step up, be it Kalif Raymond or Isaiah Williams. Raymond is an effective outside vertical threat despite being just 5-foot-8 and 180 pounds, but he’s fairly limited by size. He’s been great as a subpackage player the last two seasons, but in his one year as a (mostly) full-time starter, Raymond had a low yards-per-catch and overall catch rate relative to the rest of his career. He’s better in a more concentrated role.

The rookie

Isaiah Williams made the team as an undrafted rookie, and he earned that spot. He’s also undersized at 5-foot-9 and 186 pounds, but that makes him the second-heaviest receiver on the roster. Williams has also been playing wide receiver for only three years, starting out at Illinois as a quarterback. He’s nifty and shifty working the middle of the field and on special teams, but that’s about all he immediately offers.

Obviously, the Lions are going to mitigate the relative weakness at wideout by relying more heavily than most teams on the tight ends and running backs in the passing game. Detroit is loaded at those spots with record-setting Sam LaPorta, electrifying Jahmyr Gibbs and quality receivers in David Montgomery and Brock Wright. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is creatively aggressive and will be able to find some ways to make things work; of that, I have very little doubt. But that’s not always going to be enough.

Teams that can contain St. Brown and/or take away the middle of the field routes where Goff thrives the most are going to present issues for the Lions — potentially. You can bet opposing defenses will try, and these other Lions wideouts have yet to prove they’re capable of making them consistently pay.

Oh yeah, the practice squad…

The name value is high with Tim Patrick, Allen Robinson and Donovan Peoples-Jones. Back in 2020, that would have been a wicked starting threesome. It’s now 2024 and all three were cut this summer, including DPJ by the Lions even after the team essentially dared him to lose a gig–which he did. Robinson looked very slow in Pittsburgh last year and has a ton of mileage on his oft-injured, 31-year-old body. Patrick hasn’t played in two seasons and has about the same number of career receptions (143) as I believe St. Brown projects to get in 2024. Hopefully, someone rises up for a handful of weeks and provides solid play, but based on the summer, that’s nothing more than hope.

Film study: WR Tim Patrick can make a difference for the Lions offense

Film study: New practice squad WR Tim Patrick can make a difference for the Lions offense

When the Detroit Lions announced their 53-man roster, it was a bit surprising that they only had 4 wide receivers on the roster. Those receivers are Amon-Ra St. Brown, Isaiah Williams, Kalif Raymond and Jameson Williams. This makes it likely that they’ll add another receiver at some point. Especially since the Lions announced their roster with only 52 players on it.

After cuts were made and rosters were announced across the NFL, the speculation started to build on what direction the Lions would go for that additional player.

Just a few short hours later, it was announced that the Lions signed wide receiver Tim Patrick to their practice squad. That doesn’t take up the final roster spot that the Lions have open. However, it does open the door for Patrick to prove that he’s healthy and able to earn that spot before the first game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Patrick spent 7 seasons with the Denver Broncos but over the last two seasons, health has become a major concern. He last played a regular season game in 2021 with Teddy Bridgewater and Drew Lock as his quarterbacks. In 2021, he had a career high of 53 receptions for 734 yards and five touchdowns. All signs were pointing to Patrick becoming a potential star in the Broncos offense after consecutive seasons of 50+ receptions.

The chance for stardom diminished as he suffered a torn ACL in 2022 and then tore his achilles in 2023. Now, he appears fully healthy and seems ready for another chance to prove what he can do. In fact, he has played this summer for the Broncos. In two preseason games, he recorded 5 receptions for 44 yards and a touchdown. Let’s jump into some tape from the 2021 season to take a look at what Tim Patrick could provide the Detroit Lions offense.

When looking at the film from 2021, one of the first things that stood out was how the Broncos constantly motioned Tim Patrick before the snap. Using motion is becoming very common in the NFL. Last season, the Lions used motion 62.1% of the time and their 28.9% snap motion percentage was 5th most in the NFL (per ESPN).

Looking at the play above, the Broncos come out under center with their ’12’ personnel (one running back and two tight ends). Prior to the snap, the quarterback motions receiver Tim Patrick (#81) tight to the offensive line. This gives the Broncos a condensed set to the right of the quarterback and it appears that Patrick is aligned as an H-back. However, it’s all for show.

Once the ball is snapped, the quarterback fakes the hand-off to the running back. In the process, you’ll see Patrick spilling out over the middle of the field on a deep crosser. As the defense bites on the play-action, Patrick is wide open and this ends up being an easy completion. You’d have to imagine that Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson will have interest in using him in a similar way at times.

The next play I want to highlight is Patrick setting up to block. The play above, the Broncos come out with a trips left formation and in the middle of the trips side is Patrick.

On this play, it’s a designed screen and Patrick is looking to block the #2 defender. If blocked correctly, it creates a rushing lane between the numbers and the sideline and ultimately, the receiver that catches the ball could score.

That said, Dallas Cowboys defender Micah Parsons (#11) does a great job pursuing and making the tackle. However, you can see Patrick prepared to block. While he can’t really arc block due to the defender running hard downhill on a 45-degree angle, he does a good job making contact with the defender that he has to block. Overall, he’s in a good enough position to make the block and uses his length to force the defender into the sideline.

Staying on the Broncos and Cowboys game from the 2021 season, we’ll see an easy pitch-and-catch from Teddy Bridgewater to Tim Patrick. Looking at the play above, the Broncos come out with their ’11’ personnel (one running back and one tight end). Bunched to the left of the quarterback is Tim Patrick (#81) and Jerry Jeudy (#10).

On this play, the Broncos are running Hi-Lo Crossers and in the middle of that is Patrick. Despite a defender playing in the flats and being right underneath Patrick’s route, the quarterback throws with good touch for the completion.

As for Patrick, he runs a fairly clean route with a good pace. Meanwhile, he is able to concentrate on the catch despite the defender jumping in the air to try and break up the pass. Seeing Patrick running these types of crossing routes could become a weekly thing in this Lions offense.

Watching this Broncos 2021 offense, there seemed to be a lot of ’12’ and ’13’ personnel. That’s something we see quite a bit from the Lions under Ben Johnson, so having similar run and passing concepts could ease his transition to the team.

Looking at the play above, you’ll see the Broncos aligned with their ’13’ personnel and Patrick is out wide (bottom of the screen). Once the ball is snapped, he uses an inside release before throttling down and breaking his route back to the quarterback on a hitch route.

Despite not having a ton of separation and fighting through some contact from the defender, Patrick does a good job working back to the quarterback. He sees the quarterback getting outside of the pocket and as he comes back, that makes the throw easier. With plenty of space due to the cornerback falling down, Patrick makes the catch and runs this in for a touchdown.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the Tim Patrick signing is a low-risk move for the Lions. For the last two seasons, we’ve seen them gamble on bigger-bodied receivers such as Denzel Mims and Donovan Peoples-Jones. They even brought back Marvin Jones and while none of those moves worked out, you can’t write this move off just yet.

When healthy, Patrick is a solid number two or number three receiver for an offense. He showed that in 2020 and 2021 with 31 starts and almost 1500 yards receiving. The Lions don’t need him to be Amon-Ra St. Brown; they just need him to take some of the pressure off St. Brown, Jameson Williams and Sam LaPorta.

If Patrick can stay healthy, I would assume we’ll see him sprinkled into the offense each week. He’ll work in with Kalif Raymond and Isaiah Williams and it wouldn’t be surprising if he ended up being a key perimeter blocker on run plays.

The odds have been stacked against Tim Patrick for the last two seasons but isn’t that the type of player that fits Detroit? Defy the odds and show the world that you’re still good enough.

Breaking down the Lions battle for the No. 4 and No. 5 wide receiving spots

Breaking down the Lions battle for the No. 4 and No. 5 wide receiving spots, which are still up in the air ahead of the 2nd preseason game

The Detroit Lions have one elite wide receiver in All-Pro Amon-Ra St. Brown. They have a promising, though still unproven No. 2 wideout in Jameson Williams. Veteran Kalif Raymond is an undersized but speedy and physically strong No. 3 with years of experience in offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s system.

After that?

It’s an important training camp battle that nobody seems to want to win. At least that’s head coach Dan Campbell’s take on the wide receiver room ahead of the Lions’ second preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

“We’re waiting for somebody to step forward. We’re waiting for any one of those guys to step forward,” Campbell said before a recent practice. He then challenged a few of the top contenders by name,

“(Daurice) Fountain and Tre’Quan (Smith) and Kaden Davis, we’re dying for somebody to step up and say, ‘Hey man, I’m the guy. I’m the guy you can depend on. I’ll be the same consistent player every day and find a way to make the plays that come my way.”

There are several candidates to step up, even after the team lost second-year wideout Antoine Green to an injury.

Donovan Peoples-Jones

Peoples-Jones was brought back this offseason with the seeming intent of being the direct replacement for Josh Reynolds, who left in free agency for Denver. It has not played out that way, though Campbell was encouraged by what he has seen in the last couple of days.

“DPJ I felt like has been, since the game, much better. He’s playing faster and I notice it, we all notice it. So that’s encouraging,” Campbell said of Peoples-Jones, referring to him by his initials.

Peoples-Jones offers size and productive experience. As a full-time WR2 (to Amari Cooper as the No. 1) with the Browns in 2022, the 6-foot-2 Michigan grad caught 61 passes for 839 yards and three TDs. That’s almost exactly half of DPJ’s career production in four seasons, and it sure seems like the outlier instead of the expected norm.

Daurice Fountain

Fountain has been around a long time, even if he’s still relatively unfamiliar to many fans. A fifth-round pick by the Colts in 2018, injuries nearly pushed the 6-foot-2, 210-pounder from Northern Iowa out of football. He spent last season on Detroit’s practice squad, getting notice from coaches and teammates for catching everything thrown near him and his physical style.

Fountain played his way into considerable first-team reps in minicamp and early in training camp. As a big target who blocked well and had some long-striding speed, he was a seemingly strong fit into the old Josh Reynolds role. And at times Fountain looked like The Man for the job…

…and a little too often, Fountain just didn’t flow as expected. The consistency coach Campbell covets often runs dry for Fountain and his bouts of drops, long-legged routes that don’t always have the requisite quickness, and too-tall blocking in the run game.

Tre’Quan Smith

Smith was something of an afterthought as a free agent signing earlier this offseason. His career with the Saints never really materialized as hoped when New Orleans drafted him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Much like Fountain, injuries have dogged Smith. He does have a more polished and experienced résumé , including time playing with Dan Campbell on the Saints staff and Drew Brees as his quarterback. Smith started 35 games and caught 18 TD passes among his 131 career receptions as a mid-range threat with some size and physicality after the catch.

The consistency has been lacking throughout his career, and that’s also been true of Smith’s first training camp in Detroit. As was the case in New Orleans, the precision to his route running and burst off the line aren’t great, but they’re good enough that defenses still have to take him seriously. When given consistent second-team offense reps in training camp, Smith has connected nicely with Nate Sudfeld and Hendon Hooker; first-team reps, which have fluctuated, have not been as solid for Smith connecting with Jared Goff. A lack of proven ability on special teams doesn’t help Smith’s case.

Kaden Davis

Davis is in his third summer of trying to make an NFL team, starting with the Broncos in 2022 and the Cardinals in 2023. The 5-foot-10 Davis has stuck on practice squads, but hasn’t yet climbed the ladder into a spot on the active roster.

Davis offers impressive quickness off the line and better agility and footwork than any of the players he’s competing against. While he has a smallish catch radius, Davis has shown sticky hands and a quick ability to transition from receiver to runner. He has shown he can run effective routes from the slot and working outside, though he’s been more effective working inside-out in training camp.

The biggest questions with Davis are play strength in contested catch situations and his ability to catch the ball away from his body. Davis has short arms and small hands, even for his relatively smallish height. He’s had some solid special teams reps, notably on coverage units, and that could be a deciding factor in Davis’ favor.

Isaiah Williams

An undrafted rookie from Illinois, Williams has come on strongly in the last couple of weeks. He’s taken consistent reps as the second-team slot receiver and might be the best of the candidates here at running after the catch.

A former quarterback, Williams tends to run smart routes and understands how to leverage the coverage nicely. He’s got fast feet but they don’t always gain a lot of progress, something that hinders No. 83 as a route runner. Williams stands a better chance of making it as a return specialist than as a wideout, and that’s a very real chance based on how camp has played out.

Maurice Alexander

The equation is pretty simple for Alexander, now in his third season with the Lions. The 175-pounder needs to win the punt return or kick return job to make the team. He’s got some juice as a faster-than-quick slot receiver who has shown ability on screens and quick slants.

Alexander does a good job of looking the ball all the way into his hands and he can turn it up quickly as a receiver. His lack of strength and versatility to do much more than quick-hit, short passes really limit Alexander’s upside as a receiver, which is why it’s all about return specialist for No. 1. And yes, he can win one of the two kick return spots. A terrible preseason opener against the Giants, when he put the first two punts on the ground, might have ended any realistic shot for Alexander.

Tom Kennedy

Kennedy has earned renown for his prolific, proud training camp performances. He’s had a few shots with Detroit on the active roster since joining the team in 2019, playing in 20 total games and catching 14 passes.

A tough slot receiver, Kennedy’s lacrosse background is easy to see. He’s small but plucky and might have the fastest feet on the entire roster. The issue for Kennedy is that he is effectively the exact same guy he has been in each of the last five years, and that’s a player who is always bridging between being the No. 6 WR or on the practice squad. He’s now 28 and the upside just isn’t so high anymore. Yet at the same time, Kennedy is perhaps the most known commodity; he’ll give you everything he’s got out of the slot and on special teams on every play.

Jalon Calhoun

An undrafted rookie from Duke, Calhoun has had his moments in camp. Calhoun has strong hands and can reliably block on the outside. He’s not a dynamic athlete on the field, and No. 80 is far more realistically competing for a spot on the practice squad than making the active roster as a UDFA.

 

Video: Breaking down the Lions WR room entering training camp

Video: Breaking down the Lions WR room entering training camp via the Detroit Lions Podcast

The latest in the series of Lions positional breakdowns from the Detroit Lions Podcast is now available. In this episode, the focus turns to the wide receiver room.

The Lions enter training camp with 12 receivers on the 90-man roster, and the top three spots are pretty well established. It all starts with All-Pro Amon-Ra St. Brown, who is the focal point of the passing offense. Jameson Williams is being relied upon to make a big jump in his third year, while Kalif Raymond continues to fly under the radar despite some impressive production in his three years in Detroit.

After that, Detroit has one of the bigger camp battles set to fill the final two or three spots and a lot of divergent styles of players looking to earn those roles. Who will emerge from a group that includes Donovan Peoples-Jones, Daurice Fountain, Tom Kennedy, Antoine Green and others? How much does special teams play factor in?

All that gets broken down in this solo video. An audio-only version will be available from your favorite podcast provider, too.

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Lions’ spending at WR still near bottom of NFL even with Amon-Ra St. Brown’s extension

The Lions spending at WR is still near the bottom of the NFL in 2024 even with Amon-Ra St. Brown’s extension

The Detroit Lions rewarded All-Pro wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown with a new contract this offseason that briefly made him the highest-paid wideout in the NFL. The four-year, $120 million extension that included $77 million guaranteed is a massive deal, albeit one that was quickly surpassed by Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson.

Despite the $30 million-per-year average, St. Brown’s new contract is structured such that barely 10 percent of that APY counts against the Lions’ salary cap this season. Thanks to some creative cap management, St. Brown amazingly counts only for a cap hit of $4.86 million in 2024.

Detroit’s savvy cap manipulation permeates beyond St. Brown at wide receiver. The entire WR corps will count just $21.543 million against the salary cap, which represents 8.5 percent of the team’s spending. The total expenditure at wide receiver ranks 26th in the NFL.

The Lions aren’t even spending half of what the top team, San Francisco, is devoting in cap resources to the wide receiver position in 2024. Green Bay ranks last in WR spending in 2024 at just over $11 million.

The Lions’ WR breakdown in cap hits for 2024:

Amon-Ra St. Brown – $4.862 million

Jameson Williams – $4.762 million

Kalif Raymond – $3.25 million

Donovan Peoples-Jones – $1.3 million

Daurice Fountain – $1.06 million

Tom Kennedy – $985,000

Tre’Quan Smith – $985,000

Antoine Green – $944,190

Maurice Alexander – $915,000

Isaiah Williams – $800,000

Jalon Calhoun – $800,000

Kaden Davis – $795,000

All salary figures courtesy of Spotrac. 

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